San Diego California Events. Area focus - North Park

City: San Diego
Area Population: 47,688
Elevation: 292 feet above sea level
Distance from downtown SD: 4.2 miles northeast

Morley Field Sports Complex
2221 Morley Field Drive
San Diego, CA 92104
(619-525-8262) Map

Morley Field was named after John Morley who served as a park superintendent in Balboa Park from 1911 to 1939. His guidance and inspiration for the cultivation of the park made for many of the beautiful gardens that are in the park today. Facilities: 25 tennis courts, a swimming pool, a senior center, a tiny tots play area, group picnic areas, an archery range, a multi purpose ball field, a velodrome (bicycle track), boccie courts, a disc golf course, a fitness parcourse, petanque courts, Balboa Park’s Municipal Golf Course, native trails located in Florida Canyon, Golden Hill Recreation Center and Golden Hill Park.

North Park Recreation Center
4044 Idaho Street
San Diego, CA 92104
(619-235-1152) Map

The land was acquired in 1912, then dedicated in 1928. Hall of Fame baseball player Ted Williams used to play here as a child. The rec center is one of the oldest in the city. Facilities: An indoor gymnasium with a new wood floor, an outdoor gymnasium, a multi purpose field, a craft room, a meeting room, tennis, racquetball and shuffleboard courts, and a Teen Center.

San Diego City Website
San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce
North Park Demographic Profile - Fact Sheet
North Park Demographic Profile - Map

North Park Weather - NOAA
Air Quality Forecast
Moon Phases & Astronomical Events
Recent Earthquakes

North Park Homes For Sale
North Park Condominiums For Sale
North Park Multi-Family Properties For Sale
North Park Rentals

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Services
North Park

Library
3795 31st Street, San Diego, CA 92104
(619-533-3972) Map

Post Office
3791 Grim Avenue, San Diego, CA 92104
(800-275-8777) Map

Police
2710 Howard Ave, San Diego, CA 92104
(619-284-1122) Map

Police
3636 University Avenue, San Diego, CA 92104
(619-516-3180) Map

Fire
4011 32nd Street, San Diego, CA 92104
Map

Schools
North Park

Edison Elementary School (K-6)
4077 35th Street, San Diego, CA 92104
(619-283-5961) Map

Jefferson Elementary School (K-6)
3770 Utah Street, San Diego, CA 92104
(619-293-4406) Map

Mckinley Elementary School (K-6)
3045 Felton Street, San Diego, CA 92104
(619-282-7694) Map - Website

North Park Elementary School (K-6)
4041 Oregon Street, San Diego, CA 92104
(619-293-4467) Map

Useful Links
North Park

City of San Diego Community Profile - North Park
City of San Diego Community Profile - North Park Map
City of San Diego Neighborhood Maps - Western Neighborhood
North Park, a Community of San Diego, California
North Park Community Association
North Park Historical Society
North Park Main Street
North Park Scene
Ray At Night
San Diego County Business Directory - City of San Diego
San Diego Unified School District
Wikipedia - North Park, San Diego, California

Community Profile: North Park

The North Park Community is located in the central portion of the City of San Diego and is in close proximity to downtown San Diego. North Park abuts the community planning areas of Uptown on the west, Mission Valley on the north, Mid-City on the east and Golden Hill on the south.

North Park is one of the older urbanized communities in San Diego with original subdivisions being recorded just after the turn of the century. Home to hundreds of classic California Style Craftsman houses, North Park maintains its strong residential character in its tree-lined parkways, wide streets and charming canyon cul-de-sacs. The retro style of its major business corridors along University Avenue, 30th Street and El Cajon Boulevard hark back to the 1950s.

Today, with booming revitalization underway, the business district is recapturing much of the earlier magic that defined this proud and historic community. Efforts by the community in coordination with the City to redevelop the North Park Commercial Core area has attracted a variety of new businesses and has made the area around University Avenue and 30th Street a vibrant and pedestrian friendly shopping district.

More information

North Park is a neighborhood in San Diego, California, USA. It is situated to the northeast of Balboa Park, bounded on the north by El Cajon Boulevard, on the south by Juniper Street and the South Park neighborhood, on the east by Interstate 805 and City Heights, and on the west by Florida Canyon and Hillcrest. (As a side note, the pre-Interstate 805 boundary of North Park was widely considered to be 35th Street, which is now part of City Heights.)

The North Park sign can be seen above 30th Street and University Avenue, and this intersection is often considered to be the center of the neighborhood.

North Park includes the sub-neighborhoods of Burlingame, Altadena, and the Morley Field area (site of the proposed Dryden Historic District).

North Park is served by a business improvement district called North Park Main Street.

In the 2000s North Park has undergone gentrification and housing prices have rapidly increased.

North Park is one of the most diverse communities in San Diego. It has sizeable populations of Latinos, Caucasians, and LGBT individuals. Businesses and residential neighborhoods alike reflect this diversity.

History

In the summer of 1893, San Diego merchant Joseph Nash sold 40 acres of land northeast of Balboa Park to James Monroe Hartley, who wished to develop a lemon grove. The Hartley family began the arduous process of clearing the land to prepare the earth for the grove, but providing the fledgling trees with proper irrigation was always a problem. Barrels of water had to be hauled from downtown San Diego up a wagon trail that would eventually be called Pershing Drive.

As the growth of San Diego eventually caught up with the original Hartley lemon grove, it eventually became roughly bordered by Ray Street to the west, 32nd Street to the east, University Avenue to the north and Dwight Street to the south. Hartley deemed his area "Hartley's North Park" - and years later, the name evidently stuck as the City of San Diego referred to the new suburb as "North Park."

In 1911, Hartley's eldest son, Jack, and a relative (brother-in-law William Jay Stevens) developed the plot into one of San Diego's first residential and commercial districts. After first establishing "Stevens & Hartley", North Park's first real estate firm, in 1905, Jack and William built North Park's first "high rise" commercial building, the Stevens building, on the northwest corner of 30th Street and University Avenue (today's "Western Dental" building) in 1912. "Thirtieth & University" became North Park's symbolic place name - and within 10 years, this became the heart of the community.

A history book of the area called "North Park: A San Diego Urban Village" has been written, which recollects the development of the neighborhood from 1896-1946. Copies can be purchased at North Park Main Street's office, a local shop called Lost Your Marbles Too, and at various community events.

Architecture

Although North Park is a neighborhood of mixed architectural styles from many eras, one area of note is the Morley Field area of North Park. Named for its proximity to Balboa Park's Morley Field Sports Complex, this area is lined with turn-of-the-century Craftsman Bungalows and California Bungalows. Because many of the homes were designed by renowned designer and builder David Owen Dryden, the area is the site of a proposed "Dryden Historic District." This historical district includes the homes along 28th and Pershing Streets, both bordered on the south by Upas Street and to the north by Landis Street.

As evidenced above, interest in the history of North Park (especially its architecture) appears to be growing. Helping to foster this interest and awareness is the North Park History Committee, a local volunteer civic organization. (The North Park History Committee is part of the North Park Community Association, or NPCA). The North Park History Committee manages a website at NorthParkHistory.org which contains many articles about historic sites, people and events; North Park walking tour guides; and information about committee projects and meeting information. Some of the site's extensive collection of articles on North Park's history were written by Donald Covington - historian, Dryden Expert and North Park enthusiast.

Arts, Culture and Cuisine

Ray Street, a small street containing a number of art galleries, hosts "Ray at Night" on the second Saturday evening of each month. Most of the galleries provide free wine, cheese and music. In addition, Ray Street regularly features dance or music recitals in one of the businesses along this street.

An eclectic array of restaurants, as well as independent coffee shops, can be found along the main arteries of 30th Street and University Avenue. The area is also dotted with bars and night clubs that cater to a wide diversity of patrons.

Nearby, the Birch North Park Theatre reopened after major renovations in 2005. It is the home of Lyric Opera San Diego, and also houses a restaurant (Hawthorn's) and a coffee house (Starbucks).

Just across the street is a large coffee lounge called Claire De Lune, which provides a friendly atmosphere and each weekend hosts small bands from San Diego.

Progressing up 30th Street, one finds Auntie Helen's thrift store, which funds a laundry service for people living with HIV and AIDS. At the corner of 30th and Polk alone there is the well-established restaurant Thai Time, the Otherside Coffeehouse and Ritual Tavern. Slightly further north at Howard is Tioli's Crazy Burger.

North Park has a farmers market every Thursday at the CVS Pharmacy parking lot at University and 32nd Streets. The Spring/Summer hours are 3pm-sunset, Fall/Winter 2pm-dark. They feature over 30 independent vendors; fresh, locally grown seasonal and organic produce; San Diego County grown flowers; gourmet and ethnic foods; hand made arts and crafts; live music.

As a tradition every December, North Park holds its annual holiday parade. Formerly known as the North Park Toyland Parade, it is now called the North Park Lions Club Holiday Parade.

Like other urban mesa neighborhoods north of Balboa Park, North Park has a high rate of pedestrian activity, relative to the rest of San Diego.

Transportation in North Park

North Park is served by Interstate 805, which is accessible from the University Avenue and El Cajon Boulevard exits.

University Avenue and El Cajon Boulevard are the major east-west thoroughfares in North Park. University Avenue leads west to Hillcrest and east to City Heights and La Mesa. El Cajon Boulevard leads west to Washington Avenue and Mission Hills and continues east to the city of El Cajon. Florida Street connects North Park to Downtown San Diego through Florida Canyon in Balboa Park to the south, and to Adams Avenue and University Heights to the north. 30th Street connects North Park to Adams Avenue and Normal Heights to the north, and to South Park and Golden Hill to the south. Texas Street heads north directly into Mission Valley.

There is substantial bus service connecting to Downtown San Diego as well as to the transportation hub in Old Town. The busiest bus line corridor in the San Diego metro region, known as the University Avenue transit corridor, traverses North Park.

Crash of PSA Flight 182

North Park was the site of California's worst aviation accident to date when, on September 25, 1978, PSA Flight 182, a Boeing 727-214 jetliner, crashed near the intersection of Dwight and Nile streets after colliding in midair with a Cessna 172 aircraft. The disaster killed 144 persons, including all 135 passengers and crew members on board the PSA jet, both occupants of the Cessna, and 7 persons on the ground in North Park. Nine other people on the ground were injured and 22 homes in the neighborhood were destroyed or damaged.


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